A review of “Grace Worth Fighting For” by Daniel R. Hyde. Find the book here.

On the 400th anniversary of Dort, Rev. Daniel Hyde wants to remind us again of the importance of Dort to the whole church.  So what makes Rev. Hyde’s book special among all the literature on Dort?  Rev.  Hyde wants to demonstrate the catholicity of Dort. He desires to prove Dort’s continuity with the 1500 years of Christian doctrine before it.  This catholicity not only affirms the historic doctrine of the church of Christ but also seeks a consensus on the various ways in which the Reformed had interpreted that tradition up to this point.  The men of Dort wanted to be guided by scripture and so were careful not to condemn theological systems that sought to affirm the primacy of the grace of God in his electing purpose.  Rev. Hyde has written this book so his contemporaries can recover the catholic vision exemplified in the Canons.

Rev. Hyde wants to do this in an accessible way so that the regular pastor and layman can have better access to the theology of the Synod.  He succeeds. The book is easy to read and well laid out.  He explains the significant points of the Canons well along with historical awareness.  Somebody who wants to begin studies in the Canons of Dort would have a hard time finding a better resource for understanding the theology that produced the language of the Canons.

Hyde frames his work within recent scholarship recovering the depth and breadth of Reformed theology in the 16th and 17th century.  Particularly, Muller’s work on the Reformed Scholastics.  Muller has rehabilitated the theology of the Reformed Scholastics, demonstrating their continuity with the first reformers; Luther, Calvin, Bucer, and others.  He has also reminded us once again of the diversity of thought among the reformed.  It is wonderful to see these insights integrated into an accessible explanation of the Canons. They flesh out the picture of what was going on at Dort for us.

The recent scholarship of Michael Lynch on the British Delegation to Dort also brings a unique perspective to the book.  There is sometimes a tendency to devalue or ignore the contributions of the British Delegation.  Though some of their views were in the minority, they had an important voice in shaping the canons and in providing a moderating voice between different factions. Notably, The wisdom and erudition of the British delegate John Davenant played a role. There was also politics involved.  James I was an essential ally against the Netherland’s primary enemy at the time: Spain. 

Rev. Hyde is at his best when he brings out the importance of the catholicity of this synod. He argues that the way the Remonstrants framed the doctrine of predestination completely undermined the historic doctrines concerning Christ and his works.  As Turretin likes to note, it was the Remonstrants who were the innovators, meaning that it was the Remonstrants were departing from and undermining the historic doctrines of the church.  Hyde draws parallels between the work of the Synod of Dort and the Councils of Orange and Carthage, along with numerous references to the Church Fathers and Medievals. This historical background is part of the catholicity of the synod.  It desired to preserve what had always been taught by the church of Christ.

There was another aspect to this catholicity.  The synod’s catholicy was revealed in their attempts to affirm the theologies of the various reformed traditions so long as they attempted to grapple with the truth of an election based on God’s good pleasure.  Even though there were deep tensions in the synod, the synod ended with a document that could be affirmed by the diverse group of delegates. Hyde’s attitude channels the final fraternal Spirit of the Synod, even if the process may not have been so “catholic.”  We can see this in his generosity to the Lutherans in his discussion on the Perseverance of the Saints. 

In this desire to emphasize catholicity perhaps he does miss a couple of things.  One is the role of the civil government in pushing these men to a consensus.  It is a real question whether the synod would have held together without the push from James I and Prince Maurice. What is the significance of the interference of the civil government to the catholicity of the synod?  Another discussion that is missed is the reception of the Canons in the countries from which the delegates came.  Hyde does mention that the Dutch and the French received it as a standard, meaning that they bound their ministers to this standard.  I was left wondering about the reception in Germany, Switzerland, and England and how that affects the enduring catholicity of the document.  These are not major critiques, but some interaction with these realities would have added an important perspective.

The book left me wanting more (something that a good book does). I was curious to learn more about the particular theologies of the German delegates.  How did the French church and the Swiss church interact with the Canons?  What were the particular differences between the delegates on the perseverance of the saints?  What about church order?  Were their conversations on that?  What other peripheral issues were discussed?  Of course, a popular treatment will not deal with all these questions, but I hope that this work will prompt others to dig into this synod that is unique in the history of the reformed churches.

I have high praise for this book.  It challenges both pastor and laymen to stand firm against those who militate against the doctrines of grace.  It should incite in all Christians a doxology to the “depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God!”  This is the God who saves.  At the same time, it should give the pastor and laymen humility as the church seeks to find the best way to express the mysteries of God’s grace.